wrote:
When exporting a RAW file to TIFF, should the TIFF look exactly like
the RAW file, in terms of color, clarity, sharpness, etc.?

Not necessarily ... what program are you using for RAW conversion and
viewing? What program for viewing the TIFFs? Some of the RAW
converters show quickie previews for example, and some display previews
with a bit of sharpening, which may or may not be applied to the
converted tiff (you can typically set the amount and whether or not the
sharpening is actually applied).

Also some of the RAW converters don't seem to use the monitor profile
the same was as, say, Photoshop does. And if you view the TIFFs in a
non-color managed program then they will likely look different than in
a RAW converter program.

These are the kinds of things that can cause differences in the way the
RAW looks vs the TIFF.

Bill